Ken Gire

I have to write a critical book review of Ken Gire's book "Windows of the Soul". I am having problems doing this because it is not a straight-line narrative style book. I really liked the book but I am a linear thinker and find writing over a book that in many ways is poetry is very hard.

Just ignore me.... I will do it but I just will not enjoy doing it.

The funeral went well. It was very short. I have never officiated at a Memorial Service and it is amazing how much stuff is cut out when the funeral home is totally cut out of the service. Since this is the South, we usually feed the family (enough for about 10 families). This was such an early morning service we just invited the family back for coffee and cookies. It went over very well.

I had to change the channel earlier. I couldn't bear to hear the press conference with the police and others involved with the massacre in Wisconsin. It is beside me that a police officer can be so out of control to kill 6 people. It makes me want to lock my daughter up in a bullet-proof room and never let her out. Fear is a prison of its own, isn't it? I was crying by the time I heard the pastor of the shooter's family give their press release. I hope that the community in Wisconsin will show this family the same grace and courage that the Amish community did last year to that shooter's family.

I googled myself today out of curiosity and to see if I could track down my own blog. That didn't happen but I did get to see some of the funerals that I have presided over and someone with my exact name in California is, also, presiding over funerals. I did find my name on the short-lived Board of Church and Society. My conference pretty much eviscerated that committee last year. Damn troublemakers....that's all that was on that committee. (Does sarcasm come through the blogophere very well??)

This blog is getting longer and longer because I am putting off writing about Ken Gire's book. Must go write, must go write, must go... bake cookies?

Worship Today

I did something that I have never done before in worship. Are you ready for this?? I LEFT THE PULPIT AND WALKED AROUND THE SANCTUARY. I didn't stay away from the pulpit long but I did walk around and threw mustard seeds to the congregation (no one was able to catch one of the little suckers). No one has called my D.S. yet but it might be coming. A few looked pretty shocked but no one was sleeping. Wonder what I can throw next week? Any suggestions?

Coming Together

Last week I finally started getting everything organized and feel much better about it all. I am a list kind of person. You know the type. If I go to the grocery store without my list, I forget all the stuff I need and buy a whole bunch of extra crap. Well, I am the same way about a lot of things. So I listed everything that I have to accomplish for my D.Min. program this semester (by due dates) and I listed everything that I have to accomplish for my Commissioning (also by due dates). So now I feel much better, not as out of control. I have actually submitted some of my homework assignments already. See I do work better when I have a list.

Of course, when you make lists people always try to mess them up but I'm not that easy to distract. I will have to admit that all of this ministry stuff that we have begun at the church is really interfering with my schedule (just joking--ha, ha).

Tomorrow I have my friends mom's funeral to conduct at 10 a.m. Seems kind of early but it works for them (and for me). She died of Alzheimer's just like the funeral for the church member that I conducted last month. I did the Alzheimer's walk on Thursday and met the coolest man. He is 72 and his wife was diagnosed last year with Alzheimer's. It has progressed very, very quick and she cannot even dress herself anymore. But listen to this, he was a referee with the National Football League. And was in awesome shape. I was a little jealous. He was so sweet and spent the entire time we ate together talking about his wife. After we were done, he said, "Thank you so much for letting me talk to you about my wife. It felt great to get it off my chest." What a sweety!! I love the opportunities that this calling gives to me to connect with people.

Being a pastor can be the most frustrating, hair-pulling job in the ENTIRE world and at the same time it is the most fulfilling, rewarding and soul-satisfying call that we can ever answer. I know, it happens to me on a daily basis. Trust me-- I had a Finance Committee meeting today.

Doing Something Right

My daughter was given a homework assignment that required her to use math to design her dream home. She named her dream home "Open Hearts Hospital". You see, her dream home is a small apartment on the 3rd floor of a hospital in Africa. She is the greatest!!

So while she was designing her hospital and dream home, I was reading an article in "The Christian Century" written by Parker Palmer. It talked about a man dying after donating part of his liver to his brother mainly because of poor post-surgical care. He had a couple of quotes that I thought might apply to our broken system. "Exhibit A in my case for educating a 'new professional', by which I mean a person who not only is competent in his or her discipline but also has the skill and the will to resist and help transform the institutional pathologies that threaten the profession's highest standards. I know of no field where the new professional is not needed."

or "Such an education would call us to identify and examine our own shadows. Only when we name and claim our own shadows and become accountable for the darkness that we create will we be able to evoke 'the better angels of our nature,' inner sources of light that make both individuals and institutions more humane."

I have faith that the new generation of pastors will work on reforming our system.

Fair Thee Well

My friend and parishioner's mother died early this morning. She is upset but is complying with her mother's last wishes that she be cremated. We are having her memorial service at the church. She was raised Catholic but when her parents divorced they were asked to leave the church. It has been a difficult week especially since they were in the process of moving into a new house and the electricity still hasn't been turned on. Those of you who don't live out in rural America might not know but many of us are held hostage to the local Coop. The one in our area has a habit of "losing" the orders for electric poles so it can be weeks before they get around to getting electricity out to homes.

MoreCows email me at revdulce@gmail.com and I will send you the post I carefully and thoughtfully decided not to post. Can you hear my feathers fluttering?? I did receive word from the Conference that they want me to re-do the psych evaluation. What the hell? Just another $100. No problem for them. My last evaluation didn't find anything wrong so I'm not worried. It is just a pain. They are requiring everyone do re-do it even if they had one within the last year.

My daughter and I had the most rare of days--nothing to do. Except for showing up at the funeral home with my friend, neither one of us had anything scheduled. I slept until 9:30. I needed a break today and God provided it. God is good. Now, you might think that it is shallow to pray for a day with nothing to do. Maybe it is? But I'm enjoying it.

Chickened Out

I wrote a very long blog over the article in the "UM Reporter" over the ordination process, but since I am in the process I chickened out. My sense of self-preservation kicked in. How very, very sad is that?

I hope to hear from others out there who have finished the process and can speak out with impunity.

"The Thief"

I remember Brian saying he was nervous around horses. I have a picture that shows my daughter with her horse before he died.

I have it blown up and framed on my wall. It is a great picture and they were a good team. They liked taking naps in the field together.

Tag You're It

Four jobs I've held:
Military Police Officer, Church Secretary, Pharmaceutical Company Office Manager, Nursing Home Aide

Four films I could watch over and over:
I actually hate to watch films over and over, probably because my favorite films are usually action films. If I had to choose, it would be the Star Wars movies and Lord of the Rings Trilogy

Four TV shows I watch:
Grey's Anatomy, Numbers, CSI:Miami, That 70's Show

Four places I've lived:
New Mexico, Germany, Arizona, Alabama

Four favorite foods:
Crab Legs
Chocolate
Chocolate
More Chocolate

Four websites I visit everyday: (or almost daily)
funtrivia.com
http://midliferookie.blogspot.com/
http://brianvinson10.blogspot.com/
http://morecows.blogspot.com/

Four places I would love to be right now:
In bed, An Island Paradise, A mountain retreat, getting a massage

Four names I love but would/could not use for my children:
Samantha (shortened to Sam)
Maxine (shortened to Max)
Those are the only two that I can think of right now. You can see that I wanted my daughter to have all of her options open. She could go for the girly, girly name or the tom-boy name. She said that I should have named her "Sam".

Anyone who reads my blog gets tagged. Not fair, but that way I get to read about you. Thanks "Mid-life Rookie" for tagging me.

Hospice

I received a call last night around 9:30 that one of my parishioner's mother was dying at the hospice (which is one hour drive). I got home after 1 a.m. She is still holding on. This family is one of the reasons that I am participating in the Alzheimer's Walk on Thursday. It has been very hard on the family to watch the mother forget them, forget herself, forget everything.

Needless, to say I was not very chipper this morning at 6:45 when I drove Ryss to cross country. But I submitted one of the post-seminar requirements for my D.Min. today, so I have accomplished something but not much. I just can't get over being tired. I even begged off of a District Finance Meeting. I just couldn't face the drive today. Living so far out just adds an extra dimension of difficulty to everything. I'm whining, sorry.

I encourage all of you to check out www.alzalliance.org I don't know if there are organizations and walks everywhere this Thursday but it is a nice way to spend a couple of hours.

Catching My Breath

I made it back from Houston, safe and sound. Arrived to chaos. It has been non-stop since arrival. People here have been hit with a flu-like bug. No musician on Sunday. It made for an interesting Sunday. I will try to blog more when I feel like I can think. But for now, I'm not feeling very well, so I'm taking a nap.